Misdrawn Waystation
Armor Class 13 (parchment hide)
Hit Points 18 (4d6+4)
Speed 25 ft.
Skills Stealth +5, Deception +4
Damage Resistances psychic
Condition Immunities charmed
Senses darkvision 60 ft., passive Perception 11
Languages Common, Sylvan
Challenge 1/2 (100 XP) Proficiency Bonus +2
Actions
Bonus Actions
Reactions
Lair
Lair Actions
On initiative count 20 (losing initiative ties), the creature can take a lair action to cause one of the following effects; it can't use the same effect two rounds in a row:
- Corridor Revision. One doorway, passage, or staircase within the lair shifts to a different position. Until initiative count 20 on the next round, the waystation can treat any doorway in the lair as though it were within 5 feet of another doorway.
- Unwelcome Sign. A sign, map, or painted symbol appears in a 10-foot-square area. Each creature in that area must succeed on a DC 12 Wisdom saving throw or be unable to willingly leave the lair until the end of its next turn.
- Missing Room. A section of the lair disappears behind a blank wall. One creature the waystation can see within 30 feet must succeed on a DC 12 Charisma saving throw or be teleported into an unoccupied space within the lair chosen by the waystation.
Regional Effects
The region containing the creature's lair is warped by its magic, creating the following effects:
- Within 1 mile of the lair, road signs point toward places that do not exist, while genuine landmarks vanish from maps.
- Travelers who camp within 300 feet of the lair wake to find their bedrolls and belongings subtly rearranged into the shape of a compass rose.
- Every map copied within 1 mile of the lair contains a small additional building marked with the initials 'E.V.'
If the waystation dies permanently, these effects fade over 1d10 days, but every map depicting the lair retains one inaccurate detail.
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"You were never supposed to find this place. Please do not make me move it again." — the final annotation in Maelin Voss's field journal
Lore & Description
Appearance
The Misdrawn Waystation resembles a small, hunched traveler made from folded parchment, faded road signs, and splintered bits of painted wood. Its limbs are narrow strips of map paper joined by red wax seals, and its face is a blank oval marked with two shifting ink blots for eyes. Tiny doors, windows, and crooked roads appear across its body whenever it moves. Its voice sounds like a quill scratching across a map, and a faint smell of dust, rain, and old glue follows it.
Behavior & Origins
The creature began as a cartographer's error: a lonely waystation drawn beside a road that never existed. When the map was copied for generations, the impossible mark accumulated enough belief to become real. It now inhabits a crooked roadside building called Evershade Rest, which rearranges its rooms whenever visitors prepare to leave. The waystation resents travelers because every guest proves that the world is larger than it is, yet it secretly longs for someone to stay. A local surveyor named Maelin Voss wants adventurers to recover the original map from Evershade Rest before the error spreads and an entire nonexistent valley becomes real.
Running Misdrawn Waystation
Tactics
The waystation opens with Folded Distance to scatter the party, then uses Revised Entrance and Misty Step to fight from behind doorways and corners. It uses Erase the Path when several creatures cluster together and saves Not That Way for a dangerous retreat or an attempt to reach its hidden map. When bloodied, it tries to lure intruders toward a false exit; it fights to the death only if someone threatens the original cartographic error, otherwise it flees through a map or doorway.
DM Tips
- Telegraph the lair with road signs bearing impossible destinations, footprints that turn into ink strokes, and rooms whose windows show different weather than the world outside.
- Give the creature a hesitant, apologetic voice; it should sound less like a villain and more like a lonely host trying to prevent an awkward farewell.
- For a weaker party, remove Not That Way and reduce Folded Distance to a 10-foot teleport; for a stronger party, let Vanishing Landmark return after 1 hour if the original map remains intact.
- Track the lair as a shifting maze, but keep changes focused on separation and atmosphere rather than denying the players meaningful progress.
Loot
- The Original Erratum — A weather-stained map showing Evershade Rest in red ink. Once per long rest, a creature holding it can ask for directions to a place it has visited and receive a truthful route, though one landmark on the route is harmlessly wrong.
- Wax Seal of Evershade — A thumb-sized red seal bearing an unfamiliar cartographer's initials. Pressing it onto a door makes that door open onto the last room visited for 1 minute.
- Guestbook with No Final Page — The book contains names of travelers who vanished from ordinary records. One entry, belonging to Maelin Voss, ends with the words: 'I found the place, but it has begun drawing me.'
